The is a Japanese railway line which runs between and stations in the cities of Niigata and Shibata in

Niigata Prefecture is a prefecture in the Chūbu region of Honshu of Japan. Niigata Prefecture has a population of 2,227,496 (1 July 2019) and is the fifth-largest prefecture of Japan by geographic area at . Niigata Prefecture borders Toyama Prefecture and ...

. It is part of the East Japan Railway Company (JR East) network.

Basic data

*Operators, distances: ** East Japan Railway Company (JR East) (Services and tracks) *Niigata – Shibata: **

Japan Freight Railway Company , or , is one of the seven constituent companies of Japan Railways Group (JR Group). It provides transportation of cargo nationwide throughout Japan. Its headquarters are in Shibuya, Tokyo near Shinjuku Station. The Japan Railways Group was fou ...

(JR Freight) (Services only) *Kami-Nuttari Junction – Shibata: *Double-tracking: Niigata – Niizaki *

Railway signalling Railway signalling (), also called railroad signaling (), is a system used to control the movement of railway traffic. Trains move on fixed rails, making them uniquely susceptible to collision. This susceptibility is exacerbated by the enormo ...

: ATS-Ps

Services

;Limited express, Rapid , the following services are operated. ;Local :Niigata - : every 20 minutes :Toyosaka - Shibata: every 60 minutes (every 20 minutes during peaks)

Station list

* All stations are located in

. Symbols: * ◇ - Single-track; station where trains can pass * ^ - Double-track section starts from this point * ∥ - Double-track * ∨ - Single-track section starts from this point

Rolling stock

Present

E129 series The is a DC electric multiple unit (EMU) train type operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) on local services in the Niigata area since 6 December 2014. Design Built at the J-TREC factory in Niitsu, Niigata, the stainless steel body ...

2/4-car EMUs (since December 2014) * E653 series 7-car EMUs ('' Inaho'' limited express, since September 2013) File:JRE E129 A5.JPG, E129 series

Former

115 series The is a DC electric multiple unit (EMU) train type developed by Japanese National Railways (JNR) and now operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR-West), and the Shinano Railway. Operations JR East JR East operated their last 115 series ...

2/3/4-car EMUs (until March 2018) *

E127 series The is a DC electric multiple unit (EMU) train type operated on local services by East Japan Railway Company (JR East) in Japan since 1995, and also by the third-sector railway operator Echigo Tokimeki Railway since March 2015 as the ET127 ser ...

2-car EMUs (until March 2015) * 485 series 6-car EMUs (''Inaho'', until July 2014) * 165 series * 70 series File:JRE-115-nigata.JPG, 115 series File:Jre E127 V1.jpg, E127 series File:485 Inaho 8 Higashi-Niigata 20080526.JPG, 485 series EMU passing through Higashi-Niigata Station on an ''Inaho'' service, May 2008 File:JRE 165 at Toyosaka Station 19871228.jpg, 165 series

History

The first section opened on 23 December 1952 was the 12.3 km line between Shibata Station and Kuzutsuka Station (now

Toyosaka Station is a railway station on the Hakushin Line in Kita-ku, Niigata, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East).Stations of the Hakushin Line
(JR East) {{East Japan Railway Company Lines Lines of East Japan Railway Company Rail transport in Niigata Prefecture Railway lines opened in 1952 1067 mm gauge railways in Japan